Some Wonderful Re-Installation Adventures With The "Claymore" (Post No. 4)

    Last post, I talked about how I had some issues with the Claymore in regard to not having an accessible boot partition and how that would make me feel like hiding my angry face behind a photo of a smiling one. 

   Now however, I'm having such a bad day with the stupid thing that I feel like I want to crawl into a hole... Or bed, because I'm already wishing it was 21:59 ADT. 

   So, let me tell you a bit more about what's up, and why I feel this way.

Exhibit A: Re-Installing Windows Dix and Attempting to Put Back a Linux Partition

   What I thought was supposed to happen was that Windows 10 would be quite content to re-install itself to my AMD Radeon SSD 240.0GB which I had the OS installed to originally, and then just leave the 1.0TB Seagate Drive (FireCuda) 100% free for use as the Linux partition drive. 

   However, what I didn't realize, that this new re-installation of Windows 10 decided to take space from the drive to use as "System Reserved." Oops. And keep it virtually inaccessible for me to use as the partition I wanted it to use in the first place. >:( 

  Like, why did I think it would be a good idea to dual-boot Microsoft Windows and Linux? Oh, yeah... Now I know. As the 2020s continue on, I'm considering leaving the Windows ecosystem for good, and doing everything, work and play, I do on the computer in the Linux land outside the society regulated by MIKRSFT. 

  Of course, now I'm probably going to consider choosing to have a work computer (+ 1 Zoom Computer, which I'm going to talk about later) running Linux, and I can just hopefully call it a day and maybe kick my feet up & relax a little bit from this stress, decompressing myself as much as possible.

  Oh well, at least I'm going to have to only look at the Windows(R) Taskbar 50% of the time I'm on my PC anyway. And as far as "work" goes, I don't want to use an interface which doesn't look overly professional, or aesthetically pleasing. I mean sure - Tablet interface does look good, but in reality, only on a "tablet computer." Not a desktop or laptop that is non touch-screen and the screen doesn't come off. Anyone who subscribes to the doctrines of minimalism can hate me for my choice there if they want - just that I think it's pointless to have to click in the middle of the taskbar instead of the bottom-left. Just the same as I always have had since 1995, and on a computer of my own since 2002, although my first PC ran an OS which was new in 1995. 

Exhibit B: The New Zoom Computer 

  I ordered a computer which was an older model DELL tower from eBay with the intention of turning it into my brand-new Zoom computer. As for the old one? I think I'll probably just retire it to spend the rest of its life powering a virtual arcade machine inside a customized cabinet complete with its own marquee, monitor built right into the cabinet, and speakers mounted permanently into the cabinet for sound. 

  Of course, the computer has yet to arrive - so I need a standby solution until it actually does turn up, so I'm probably going to have to tinker with something to get it running Zoom for me primarily in the meantime. 

Exhibit C: Sure, now it matters if you're a PC or a Mac...                    ...But times are soon coming in the future where                      none of that stuff will be IMPORTANT EVER AGAIN!    

  Traditionally, it mattered whether you had a PC (Windows computer) or a Mac (Apple Macintosh computer), and for a while, I felt like I belonged in the other group. But thanks to me being permanently located 17 exits too west of a Starbucks and 4-7 exits too west of a fair trade cafe (or maybe 1 or more too east) the only choices for specialty coffee are located either in the McDonald's (which the Greenwood one is apparently having a renovation done on it) Tim Hortons (which until the 2020 COVID Pandemic was in the Greenwood Mall; I've pretty much decided I'm just going to give up the travel mugs I bought from that store to my parents since keeping them around is some sort of bad juju or something), or if I was desperate and in a pinch, the local convenience store, which as of April 2022, and to my knowledge, both are located in convenience stores located inside petrol stations. One being the petrol station Needs in the vicinity of the Sobeys supermarket, and the other being an Irving Mainway. 

  I'm old enough to remember when the Macintosh computers probably looked like this:

 Or this:

 Or, some other modern Mac design from the G3 iMac down to the M1 iMac, which essentially hasn't changed (much) from the design of the G5 iMac which would be later recycled in a different shell color scheme with brushed aluminum and metal.

  But, in my opinion (even if it's wrong) all Mac products available in the 2020s computer market, even if in time, more people choose to rent these fruit-based computers instead of outright purchasing these pieces of equipment, are just nothing but "fashion accessories." And, no, I'm not talking about the old ones - whether they were commercial successes of their time, or unloved commercial flops which are collector's items on auction sites... 

  I respect my elders enough to not say they are pretentious, even if a Macintosh TV from the 1990s would be considered a fashion accessory/ collector's item. Even if I find one at the right price, or something, I'll probably take good care of it. 

  But any of the Apple computers where in a very past blog post I said, if you had them, I will laugh at you (I only focused on the iMac/Mac Mini/Mac Pro desktop and MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptop computers - since if you use an iPad, I'm just going to laugh at you regardless) they are all fashion accessories. 

  Of course, at the present time, I've decided that I do not feel that Windows 11 nor the current version of macOS will serve my computing needs for anything serious productivity-wise in my opinion. Why? Well, when I was learning to try to start a sign shop business out of the back room of my house (it hasn't really gotten very far off the ground yet, in case you ask) I've learned a lot more about the technology I use for powering that business. 

1. Even though this does not "technically" pertain to matters of sign business ins and outs at the day's start & end, spinning drive computers take forever to start:

 Of course, this is a combination of a number of factors. This includes such things as (1.) The computer's age, (2.) How much RAM the computer has allocated to the OS of booting choice, (3.) How much space is on the hard drive partition of OS of boot choice, regardless of how big or small it is, (4.) The "brain" of the computer, or the CPU, which is the microprocessor of the unit, (5.) Future-proofing. 

  We'll look at these one at a time, starting with the computer's age.

(1.) The computer's age

 While I can't exactly expect to start a business with all new equipment anyway, and having to borrow money against the purchase or finance of new equipment is kind of ill advised upon by financial experts that would prefer I didn't go too far underwater in this business venture, the computer's age is important. Like, how old is the actual computer as a whole, and that is defined by the components, and other factors. Older computers may be required to run the 32-bit software that some software requires, which basically means 64-bit software is pretty much out of the question anyway. 

  However, the older the computer itself and all components is, the more likely I'm going to see reliability issues on at least several, if not all of the components. 

(2.) How much RAM the computer has allocated to the Operating System of boot-up choice

 Although age is important in determining how old a computer used in productivity work is going to perform day-in, day-out, something equally important is RAM. It was believed in the 1980s commonly that 640K ought to be enough for anybody. However, the 640K gradually grew to MB, and as of right now, it is in to the GB range.

  512MB was considered a lot in the late 1990s early turn of the millennium, but was considered average by the middle of the 2000s, and below average by the 2010s, and likely abandonware by the present day. 

  This is usually because the minimum working configuration is 4GB, considering most work computers online and working today have 64-bit operating systems. 

  You should probably notice a somewhat more noticeable boost in speed on a system with more RAM, and a somewhat more decrease in speed on a system with less.

(3.) How much space is on the hard drive of the boot partition of the Operating System choice

 Another factor to consider is how much space does my computer have on the hard drive of the boot partition of my Operating System of choice? 

  This is important, since whether you have a mechanical "spinning" drive, or SSD, regardless of what type of boot media you have inside the computer's chassis for it to load the OS software it needs to first, how full it is might consider how long the OS takes to boot, or to literally do anything at all. 

  If 25% - 50% of the hard drive is full, then you should be doing just fine. Any more than that, and you may need to either consider deleting some stuff, or upgrading your drive storage to something a bit larger.

  If you do use the Microsoft Windows operating system on your PC of choice, however, you can download utilities such as CrystalDiskInfo to diagnose your system's hard drive.

If you want to download CrystalDiskInfo for Hard Disk and SSD information, as well as benchmark software for performance test info on your hard drive, click this line of text.

  (Mac and Linux users will need to use tools specific for Mac OS and Linux, however.)

(4.) The "brain" of the computer, or the CPU/microprocessor.

  We'll talk about what is referred to as the "brain" of the computer, or the CPU, sometimes referred to as the microprocessor. 

  For people with little or no knowledge of CPUs, the acroynm CPU stands for Central Processing Unit. It is usually on the motherboard, and although for years, traditionally, the majority of computers sold were either Intel or AMD, or Advanced Micro Devices chips, thanks to Apple Computer developing their own CPU for use of Macs of this generation, the M Series, people who want to actually buy computers should know that the only CPUs that mean anything are either Intel or AMD. If you buy an Apple computer with the M1 or other M Chip, you aren't buying a computer, but a fashion accessory. You know what? I take that back! People who buy Apple Computers manufactured in this age shouldn't be buying any equipment at all, they should just rent for however long they need to rent the device for, and when their rental period is over - give it back to the rental company from which they rented it from. Sure, it might seem like glorified borrowing, but if that's the direction culture is headed in, nobody buy any more Apple devices - just rent them all instead! >:( 

  Anyway...

  If you're wanting to buy the computer based on an Intel or AMD chip, you should know that the higher the number the CPU has on the series, generally the faster the processor is going to end up being. The lower the number, the slower the computer, and the higher the number, the faster the computer.

(5.) Future-proofing

 Although no computer hardware lasts forever, especially so if you do choose to use a fashion accessory Apple device, you have to realize that computers reaching the end of their serviceable life, whether by hardware or software, you have to realize that the big two of Operating Systems, Microsoft and Apple, with their Microsoft Windows and macOS operating systems do not expect you to keep using the maximum version of their software that would've been fine 5 or 10 or more years ago in the present day. 

  Like, although the MacBook Pro 15" from 2010 with the Intel Core i5 processor, with 4.00GB of RAM, and a 320.0 gigabyte hard drive (The OS may actually report less depending on drive format, and how you have the partition set up), may have been an amazing computer back in its day, age has finally caught up with it, and the max macOS 10.13 "High Sierra" is now officially obsolete, however if you really want to use it for a Microsoft Windows machine, you're still good until 2025, considering Windows 10 is the max OS it will work in Boot Camp. (I tested 11 on it so you don't have to, and all 11 did was crash with the boot camp drivers and keep throwing up the WDF_DEVICE_VIOLATION stop error on the screen of death which isn't exactly very blue anymore) 

  This means that my MacBook Pro 15" mid-2010 model is obviously past its prime, and the next stop for it in life once everything does finally quit on it, is the great repair shop in the sky. And no, unless you use a VM, you cannot install Linux on the computer natively anymore, although I remember pretty much being able to be used to do that. It sucks, but that's unfortunately how the APPLE rots.

  So, if you want a more sustainable use experience, then Microsoft Windows is clearly out of the question, since the current version will only likely be supported until a version of Windows two in the future or more depending on the version, is released by Microsoft.

  And, since I've probably already told people over and over & over again how I feel about Apple devices until it makes their ears bleed and their mind play that feeling I have like a broken record, this likely means I won't be shelling out any amount of money to purchase a brand new MacBook with the Apple Sillycon chip when the one I have now quits on me, or even rent one for that matter, because unless the next person to rent the same one I did with the exact same specifications & everything is one of my foes, then I wouldn't wish the Apple M1 chip hardware on anybody.

  So, that really only leaves the tertiary and final option, Linux. Now, while some nerds I know may not want me to do anything on Linux, I've pretty much decided that I don't feel like I'm afraid of them, and I kind of already know my way around the kernel pretty familiarly. And, considering how the Linux kernel is constantly changing, and the update is always supposedly going to go to the absolute latest version of Linux, then I'm pretty much sold on the idea of not throwing out my computer unless everything breaks on it.

  In a way, having a kind of setup like this for a "business" computer, in my mind - is sort of a win-win sort of thing for me, even if I decide that if the punishing government that wants to punish people who want to enterprise their own business from the ground up effectively later, and still have a work computer for other office type careers where I'll probably continue to work until the completion of the ride of the Biblical Revelation "four horsemen of the apocalypse", due to me selling off all my other business equipment on a Friday for cheap cheap cheap, then, I think I know the answer to my computing life for the balance of this decade.

Linux for work...

Windows for play...

And macOS can just $%#@ off!!

 

2. So what about the Claymore?

  Well, if you're still here, which I suppose if you enjoy a long read, and are still reading this, then I suppose you are, I think you know what I'm planning to do this afternoon - (or at the very least what I have left of it.) 

  I'm going to probably try re-installing the Linux OS for the desktop work (again) and then I'm going to install Batocera all over again from the ground up, and I'll even have the ROM storage drive be back to the purpose of that again since I'm going to probably still want to have it be that virtual arcade machine when I do finally retire it from writing LibreOffice documents on it for good. This means I'll probably work on making the arcade cabinet for it (or at least the beginning) around sometime mid-May.

Note to self: Unless you intentionally want to make your computer **** its pants, don't intentionally install the Terminal Mod, "Suicide Linux." (Post No. 3)

 Seriously. Just don't. 

You'll save yourself a whole lot of grief, and if you really want to be keeping yourself entertained in some twisted fashion during a boring ass conference, you'd be better off sticking to the rabbit (wabbit) virus fork bomb in Linux, just to see how much your i5 can take before things start freezing and the only way out is to press the reset button on your PC's case, if it has one, or if it has the Power button only, holding it in with your finger for a few seconds, waiting for the drives to spin down if they are mechanical, waiting for the fans to stop spinning, (I don't think there's anything you need to do while you wait for your SSDs to stop running) and then start everything right back up again.

Not that I advise doing that (intentionally) either.

Remember the Claymore which I tore a new butthole in the previous blog post, "Things I Hated About The Claymore, Post No# 2?" 

Apparently I like an idiot decided it would be kind of entertaining in some sort of macabre way to have Suicide Linux and try to combo it with a fork bomb. Sadly, I think the consequences caused the grub partition which Linux populated to be gone forever. But then again, I don't think I need to remember 2020 anymore anyway - it was a very horrible year... 

I mean, if anything, this gives me an excuse to completely "factory reset" the PC from the standpoint of a typical owner who is paranoid. Namely, the re-installation of the OS (Particularly Microsoft Windows and Ubuntu-Linux), the restore of pretty much all the games and files that I had lost (Might not be a shit idea to somehow get a hard drive or SSD big enough installed in my RedEye so I can take my steam library on the go) and I'm probably not going to bother pairing my Bluetooth controller with the Claymore again, probably pairing it with this computer for joystick gaming at home, but probably wanting a wired controller separate for when I need to be on the go gaming - which seems pointless, but in my mind it seems like a brilliant idea.

Because of this, I'm going to be factory reinstalling the OS 

(Windows) - Don't tie a local account to this. Just don't.                        (& this time - stay the fuck out of Insider Preview                 and do not install Windows 11. You built it as a 10                 system, so you're retiring it as a 10 system.) 

(Linux) - Initially, install it using OEM configuration. Then, when             you reboot to the desktop the first time after                      installation, press, "Prepare for shipment to end user." 

If my camera and mic work in Windows, then I will likely be ignoring the Linux partition, since I plan on retiring this computer soon, and since I plan on not keeping it as a productivity PC, I'm going to get rid of it, considering the larger form factor is considerably overkill for the job I want it for. (Basically, it's the equivalent of playing the Gran Turismo Sunday Cup with a LM Racer - yes, it's possible to do it, but the real questions you should ask if you think about doing it - are why? What's the point? And if I can do it with a Castrol Tom's Supra, then why don't I just do it with the Toyota MA70 Supra, or a AE86 Corolla?) 

So, in conclusion - don't be an idiot and decide to brick your computer with "Suicide Linux." 

It's not worth it.

You'll pull your hair out and scream if you have it happen to you if you know how to recover it. 

You'll literally pluck every follicle of hair from your scalp and scream twice as loud if you have it happen to you if you don't know how to recover it. 

Things I hate about my computer which I called "The Claymore" (Post No. 2)

    Well, I've been using this computer for nearly two years now, and I'm already seriously considering pasturing this thing. Either that, or putting it up for sale to the highest bidder who's willing to have a computer that they didn't build with a blanked out install of Windows and Linux dual-booting on the same PC considering that my parents may kind of accuse me of wanting to recycle something that still runs like a relative clock.

    Of course, there are some things that make me unhappy and discontent with this particular computer, and if I get one to replace the spot that this particular PC served in my life - - then I'm going to have to maybe not get such a chonky desktop tower next time. Considering that in order to use it, it has to be plugged into AC mains tower at all times. 365 1/4 days of the year, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all days of the month of 12 months. 

    Let's get to why I despise this computer so much that unlike when I had worked so hard to build it in 2020 - I don't think it'll be the right fit for me in 2022 or further.

1. I have the wrong motherboard in this PC: When I was planning all throughout 2019 to build this computer, I was intending to use a lower-end gaming motherboard not made by a company which three years later bleeding heart liberals would want me to not give any money to so as to make sure "the right side of history being written" doesn't lose to "the wrong side of history being written". And this lower-end motherboard was one where it had a built in Graphics so that I would need the AMD chip that would be useful for onboard graphics (with graphics chipset) - and on top of that, the board I ended up with ended up having a GPU pulled out of a cousin's old Alienware PC which proved to work for the first while of using it, then swapped to an older S3 card which I really don't want to put in anything modern since it'll make it look like I have a '80s Mac, to a lower-end NVIDIA GEFORCE Card. But, as things happened, they didn't pan out that way. I guess in a way, I kind of got rushed to the build before I noticed my custom label which I was a noob at using Gerber Composer to design still (relatively) was writing information about the wrong motherboard, the wrong RAM, and the only thing which ended up being correct in the entire thing was the SSD which I installed Windows on, which ironically, I intended to use on an AMD motherboard, with an AMD chip powering the entire thing. 

I could've said the case was also wrong, but then again - a case is just a tin box that houses all of the metal and guts inside, so never mind.

2. When I wanted to buy hard drives for my PC, I said "Western Digital," and my brother in law and rest of my family said "Seagate.": Which I regret, and because of this feel like a total hypocrite for selecting a Seagate drive which in my opinion was not only the wrong storage for the Virtual Machine partition that I wanted to have, but whenever I hear the hard drive brand name, "Seagate", my brain immediately thinks FireCuda since I only trust those hard drives despite being made by Seagate ironically. 

(No, I don't need any mental or medical help associating FireCuda with Seagate primarily. That's just how my brain works in a normal 24-hour day with the proper circadian sleep cycle from 0:00-23:59.) 

3. When installing the OS initially, I wanted the Pro license version, but I got the Home version instead: Because I was planning to network to my PC upstairs, correct? It's not like I don't know how basic file sharing works, since I've played with a DELL PowerEdge 1500 SC for a brief period of time before I tore it all apart when it would just stop powering on mysteriously. Someday, I hope to build a NAS provided all four horsemen of the apocalypse haven't completed their ride yet, and when I get the new setup, I'm probably just going to take everything off this computer, dump it to the NAS (regardless of whatever it actually is) and then just go on, and progress with my day. And also, I was planning to take some advantage of Hyper-V to run my own virtual machines running whatever versions of Windows I felt the need to play with to go back for old time's sake. And preferring to keep the "Home" license computers out in the sign shop where they belong. 

4. COVID-19 happened: This computer ironically ended up being my main PC throughout the COVID-19 virus pandemic. 

5. Sully 1.0: Some random little shit harasses me to not be living my life in my fantasies because I hurt myself according to him, and as a result, I end up permanently deactivating Facebook from my account and blocking the webpage in Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome (I believe Edge and Opera can still access the page) and in Firefox for Windows, it goes to a [WEB ADDRESS REDACTED.]

6. End of an RP Story which started on three other computers, and my cell phone: Also, I also started an RP story with someone on a DELL Latitude E6500, Lenovo G530, and ZTE Z755ZBL from 2018, in addition to my MSI 970 Katana, at the time when it worked. This computer became the end of it. 

7. Initial Poor Feelings About Windows 10: In the beginning of when I decided I would set up this computer, I was still very paranoid and very hating of the idea of Windows 10. When the experience eventually became somewhat tolerable, and I could manage to live with it almost just as fine, or perhaps a little better than I could have with 7, 8 or even 8.1, then I decided to play with Windows 10 a little bit, and explore the capabilities of its hybrid mobile interface which had evolved from 8.1, and mourn the passing of a useful feature I used to like from 7, even going on to complain about it in the Ramen Pirate blog, which I used to publish at the time. But even if Windows 10 going all the way to release version 21H2 at the time would eventually become tolerable and acceptable, then the damage has already been done. Even though Windows 11 may have "fixed" what Windows 10 broke, partially or entirely having all my productivity needs cared for by computers running Linux or BSD based operating systems may not be too far away from me in the horizon. 

(and no, I ain't talking about macOS. I mean either GNU/Linux, or a BSD OS which it might be an adventure to actually set the computer up from start-to-finish. Although, it may be easier for me to just main Ubuntu since I don't feel like navigating through entire lines of command line code to even do anything, and I would probably need a manual to figure out what commands do do anything in my future OS of choice...) 

8. My new computer has Windows 11: I ordered a new PC from Amazon this past winter, and it arrived at the end of February pretty much. I was expecting it to have Windows 10 Home on there, and my next plan was to simply upgrade it to Windows 11 Pro. But, when I powered the PC on I was greeted with Windows 11 Home. So, because of this, I'm probably going to either keep my new PC as Windows 11 Home as long as I need to keep it as such, which could very well be the entire lifespan of the PC, or, just get my new license key for Windows 11 Pro should the need arise and change the version of Windows my computer has running on it. 

9. No VGA Port: I know I could've adapted this, but - this PC has literally no VGA port. Why do I care if my computer has a VGA port in 2022 you ask? Because I want to hook it up to my TV as an entertainment device, and have it play an assortment of my favorite music over the TV speakers as opposed to $40 desk speakers from Amazon, and yes I was aware I could keep the thing adapted to VGA with DVI-to-VGA, but I figured I would rather instead not use any adapters and just use HDMI. I regretted the decision immediately demoting my PS3 to Component 2, which has almost as good video quality as HDMI did, but the sound has suffered somewhat and I don't power the PS3 on very often anymore anyway, just to ensure the RTC battery on the PS3 logic board doesn't go dead, and also, to change Daylight Savings Time setting of the clock from Summer Time to Winter Time and vice-versa. Of course, with permanent Daylight Saving Time coming to Nova Scotia as soon as potentially next year - I'll have "Farewell to Nova Scotia" on repeat eventually... Hopefully... 

10. Sully 2.0: This didn't happen specifically on the PC in question like I claim it did, however - it did happen on the new computer which I already mentioned I have been using for a month or so at the time this second sully happened. But, since I haven't even gotten the PC properly paid off yet, probably due to the fact I could simply have just gotten the funds for it some other way, I refuse to have that computer get sullied, overheated, get a virus, or otherwise be demotion worthy. So, what do I do in a situation like this? Well, I guess the only answer to this question is, a three step process, especially since the person who did Sully 1.0 and Sully 2.0 are the exact same, despite them denying that they are. 

1. Step One: Remain calm. Try not to lose your temper or become violent on anything. "Anything" by this definition includes inanimate objects, animals, and other human beings that may not understand why you are being violent with them. 

2. Step Two: Curse the person that caused Sully 1.0 & 2.0 to your computer at the same time, and probably realize the reason you chose to do this is maybe karma biting you in the ass for making a Sim of them where you paired them up with the most homosexual man in the whole entire universe for better or worse, in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth, till death do they part.

3. Step Three: Realize that nothing you can do or say can make them not sully any more things than they have already sullied, or have yet to sully, or are sullying, and just move on with your life, hoping in the name of all that is holy and divine that you can actually move on with your life.

4. Step Four: If all else fails, get pissed, make plans to back up the entirety of your computer that you did get sullied a minimum of one time and have gotten sullied again and may get sullied yet again in the future the longer you use the computer, wipe everything of personal significance to you from the hard drive, reinstall the Operating System(s) it had on those hard drives to fresh, clean, blank installs that have nothing on them, and then sell your computer to anyone who'd be willing to part with a couple hundred bucks or so just to take the stupid thing off your hands till the end of time, and then invest the $200.00 in literally anything else. It can be something that may spark joy to you personally. It can be a week's groceries in this chaotic economy at the local supermarket. Or, it can be used with someone who will agree to finance your new computer purchase to replace the one that you just sold.